The same-sex marriage debate is actually two debates. The more well-known version is the contest between those who seek to “defend” the heterosexual institution of marriage and those who argue that same-sex couples should have equal access to the legal status of marriage. Less publicized is the dispute within LGBT communities themselves, between those who believe marriage is a civil right necessary to the achievement of equality and those who insist that it’s a hopelessly heterosexual and patriarchal institution that should be abolished rather than assimilated into.

Nancy Polikoff, a professor of law at American University College of Law and long-time legal activist on behalf of lesbian mothers, enters this fray seeking to resolve and reframe both debates.